Recently, a patron’s suggestion lead me to the Ted Turner quotation many of us have heard in business: “Early to bed, early to rise, work like hell and advertise”.
I couldn’t help thinking how much things have changed since the origination of this quote. Most of us would agree that there has been a dramatic shift in advertising with the onset of social networking. Perhaps the last line could be updated to: work like hell and socialize.
An effective marketing campaign is now within easy reach of any small business owner armed with a computer and email address. Unfortunately, restaurant owners using it (for advertising) often find it very time consuming. Wading through all the noise on Facebook and Twitter in an effort to capture a targeted audience is no easy task. Recognizing the limitations, they often use these sites to drive traffic to their ‘stand alone’ sites. But, those ‘stand alone’ sites must then compete against everything else on the Internet, further complicating the ability to search for them. Whew, where will it all end?
I often hear Independent Restaurant Owners (IROs) blame chain restaurants and the ugly economy for putting them on the endangered species list. But, at Diningverse, we felt that the real problem was often the inability to find these little dining gems; so, connecting IROs with locavores seemed like the right thing to do. Patrons create their own dining universe, right down to suggesting and recommending the restaurants, making Diningverse the place for locavores to socialize.
Which takes me to that patron’s suggested restaurant…..Ted’s Montana Grill. With multiple locations, it certainly appears like a franchise. And, since the Diningverse mission is to help folks find local dining gems, I wasn’t sure if it fit our description of “local”. Yet, isn’t it the call/duty of Restaurant Owners and Patrons to let us know if a restaurant should be included on Diningverse? After all, they are the end users. Ted’s Montana Grill does have a home town feel. Everything is done with a goal to “do good” as he puts it; from being eco-friendly to staffing each location. His restaurants stand as a good example of “doing the right thing”….respecting people and the environment, which is likely why it was suggested.
Since every restaurant listed on Diningverse must have its own web profile, perhaps it could be viewed as the great equalizer of all (suggested) restaurants. It levels the playing field for ‘single location’ restaurants, yet it gives corporate owned restaurants a home town feel. In many ways, because they are patron suggested/recommended, they enhance each other when they appear side by side within a given location.
So, I guess the jury is out…..and Ted, if you are listening, what do you think of replacing “advertise” with “socialize”?
